Faith in The God Particle

If you haven’t heard (or maybe haven’t cared) on July 4, 2012, scientists discovered a new subatomic particle that they *think* might be the Higgs Boson. (Higgs Boson on Wikipedia) The Higgs Boson has been called “The God Particle” because it theoretically gives other particles mass. That is, it’s the “reason” that things exist. I’d refer to it as “The God Particle” for another reason…

A pure naturalist worldview believes that the only way to know if something exists is by empirical evidence. That is, you must be able to see, hear, smell, taste, touch, or measure the “thing” in some way to know it exists. If you can’t “emprically prove” this thing, then you’re best to be skeptical of its existence.

This is an argument used against the existence of God Himself. Because we can’t see, smell, taste, touch, hear, or measure Him, it’s best to believe He does not exist. As Christians, we have faith that God exists. We see the evidence of Him working in our lives and in the lives of others. We see the effects of His sovereignty and grace in the world at large. We understand that He is the one that gives meaning to existence. Because of our faith, we are able to “bet” on God, even when it seems crazy to other people.

That’s why the Higgs Boson is a big deal. See, before July4, 2012, no one had ever measured a Higgs Boson. Ever. According to the naturalist worldview, it would be best to believe it doesn’t exist. However, some really smart guys believed it did exist. They saw the effects of this theoretical particle on other particles. They used mathematical models to show that if it exists, it’s the best thing for all other particles. They wagered on their theory. Technically speaking, if you are a pure naturalist, on July 3, 2012, you should have been skeptical that the Higgs Boson existed. Today, you wouldn’t be.

How much did these scientists wager? The Large Hadron Collider in Europe (where they found the particle) was initially designed and proposed to find it. It was built from 1998-2008. The cost? 7.5 BILLION EUROS. These scientists spent over 10 years of their lives and 7.5 billion euros on a particle they shouldn’t believe in. But they did. They had faith, and they were right.